| abstract |
To provide a liquid crystal optical device which has high quality even when it is large-sized, and which can operate at low power consumption. n A liquid crystal optical device 100 comprising a pair of substrates 10, 20 facing each other, at least one of which having transparency to light, an electrooptical functional layer sandwiched between the substrates, and an electric field applying means to generate an electric field in the electrooptical functional layer, wherein the electrooptical functional layer contains a liquid crystal compound having a positive dielectric anisotropy and showing liquid crystallinity, and an alignment-controlling material for controlling the alignment of the liquid crystal compound, and the electric field applying means is so constituted as to generate an electric field containing lines of electric force substantially in parallel with the substrate surface of at least one of the substrates. |